The Winter Park Playhouse

There's a moment in every stage show when you know for sure that everything's going to be all right — or you know for sure that it's not. In Winter Park Playhouse's production of the musical revue And the World Goes ‘Round, that moment comes early, and it's one that makes you laugh out loud.

As you might guess, that's all to the good.

The song is called “Coffee in a Cardboard Cup,” from an old, mostly forgotten musical called 70 Girls, 70. In it, the five cast members bemoan the state of the world — exemplified, they tell you, by the impersonal, hurry-up, can-I-help-the-next-person-in-line fact of coffee not in old-fashioned diner-style china but in a cardboard cup.

The performers' delivery is cute and highly caffeinated, and, as they go on, it gets more highly caffeinated by the minute. By the time they're done, they're singing too fast to be believed. And you need a cup of decaf pumpkin spice latte — badly.

And the World Goes ‘Round, a collection of songs by John Kander and the late Fred Ebb (Cabaret, Chicago), works better than other revues of its kind: Most of the songs in this one are relatively little-known, and nobody tried to graft a plot onto songs that have little connection. What they have is melody and a lot of pizazz. Winter Park Playhouse delivers all of that in spades.

Take the gentle way Heather Alexander sings “Colored Lights,” a cabaret standard with a haunting melody that's a pleasure to hear. Take the hilarious way Tim Evanicki has with “Sara Lee,” an ode to Danish that Evanicki gives an old-fashioned vaudeville turn. Take the adorable way Laura Hodos has with “Arthur in the Afternoon,” a paean to daytime dalliances that's accompanied by the lithe, stylish Robert Buchanan as the boy toy of the title.

All of them are terrific in their own fashion, as is the fifth performer, Jennifer Lynn Warren, who can get away with playing both sweet (“My Coloring Book”) and sensual (“All That Jazz”).

This production isn't perfect: Not all of the cast members are as comfortable dancing as they are singing, or vice versa, and at least one song, “Kiss of the Spiderwoman,” feels out of place. But it's both perfectly charming and smartly produced, from Mindy Rothfuss's snazzy choreography to Roy Alan's savvy direction and the solid backing by musical director Christopher R. Leavy, drummer Larry Byington and bass player Nathan May.

And it's worth investing an afternoon at the theater just to watch Evanicki do his sad-eyed take on “Mr. Cellophane” or to hear Hodos belt the final verses to “New York, New York.” This little revue may not turn your world upside down. But spend a little time with And the World Goes ‘Round, and you'll savor every turn.

Elizabeth Maupin can be reached at emaupin@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5426.

Theater review
‘And the World Goes ‘Round'
What: Winter Park Playhouse production of John Kander-Fred Ebb musical revue.
Where: Winter Park Playhouse, 711-B Orange Ave., Winter Park.
When: 7:30 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays, through Oct. 6.
Cost: $22 and $30 general, $22 and $28 seniors, $20 students and entertainment professionals.
Call: 407-645-0145.
Online: Winterparkplayhouse.org.